Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-10-29
HOW WASHINGTON DIED.
Medical Men Assert that He was Bled and
Blistered to Death.

heuical men assert that He was Bied and
Blistered to Death.
New York World
Thirty members of the late Medical
Congress at Washington met in social
way after the regular business of the dav.
September 18th, in the parlor of guest at
one of the hotels. These delegates were
elderly medical men of the so-called old
school of doctors, but representing progress
slye minds of the allopathic branch of the
medical profession; some of them had
been professors in medical colleges many
years ago. These old friends in CONVEX
sational way compared notes relative to
the radical changes which have taken
place in the methods of treatment of dis
cases. the large and frequent doses of calo-
mel and other powerful remedies admins
tered to their patients in the practice of
forty and htty years ago, compared with
the almost intinitesimal doses now pre-
scrlbed and the now total abandonment of
some remedies and modes of treatment
which were in general practice then,
The oldtlme doctor and even the physi-
clan of but recent date formerly carried in
his coat pocket a formidable lance, the
sight of which frightened his nervous pa
tient. With that instrument he proceeded
by way Of preliminary preparation for a
course of medicine to open large vein
III the sick persons arm, and therefrom
draw from pint to quart of blood. Then
followed the inevitable prescription of ff-
teen to twenty grains Of calomel accom-
panied by bottle of castor oil, and the
patient would be laid up thereafter for
some days, engaged in recovering from his
heroic medical treatment Now phlebot-
omy, or blood letting, has been almost
wholly abandoned. Calomel, when pre-
scTibed at all, is given in half grain doses
at intervals Of three or four hours, and so
on to the end of the list of old popular
remedies
One of the physicians present, pursuing
this theme, astonished his hearers by as
sorting that the Father of his Country"
General George Washington, did not die a
natural death, but was killed by his doc
tors. Here several voices simultaneously
exclaimed
That's libel. Where is your evil
dence?'
Thereupon the supposed libeler pro-
duced from a Georgetown %. c. newspa-
per, printed in 1893, an account of the i'll
ness, death and burial of General Wash
lngton, together with the certificate of the
physicians, Drs: Craik and Dick. who
treated the illustrious patient in his last
illness. The certificate of these phvsi-
clans, who resided about fifteen miles
from Georgetown, showed that General
Washington, having been exposed to rain
on Friday, December 18th, in the night of
that day was attacked by chills, accompa-
MED with pain in the upper and fore part
of the throat, coughing, a difficult, rather
than painful, swallowing, succeeded by fe-
yer and quick and laborious respiration.
General Washington" says the ac-
count, regarding the attack as only Sc
we're cold. would not send for a physician,
but called in one of his servants, bleeder,
so-called, who took from the sick mans
arm nearly pint of blood, which was
goodly portion of the vigorous, healthy
life of the patient. The patient was about
in that condition until the arrival of his
physicians at 10 o'clock the next morning
Saturday, when the doctors proceeded to
repeat the bleeder's operation, and twice
within about four hours took other two
plnts or quarts of blood. In the interim
were employed two copious bleedings, a
blister was applied to the part effected,
two moderate doses of calomel were given,
succeeded by repeated doses of tartar
emetlc, amounting to five or six grains,
with no other effect than a copious dis
charge from the bowels"
This was treatment of the heroic
kind interjected the alleged libeler.
which was enough to kill any ordinary
well man." and ii was evidently doing the
business for the General, for the learned
doctors add:
The powers of life seemed now mani
testify yielding to tho force of the disorder,
Blisters were applied to the extremities,
together with Il cataplsam of bran and vim
egar to the throat. Speaking, which was
painful from the beginning, now became
almost impracticable. Respiration grew
more and more contracted and imperfect
until ll:30 o'clock on Saturday night.
when, retaining the possession of his in
tellect, he expired without a struggle"
No wonder" remarked the alleged
libeler. How could he struggle after
losing about all the blood in his body. with
huge blisters aiding in the depletion of
vital strength and his stomach crammed
with calomel and tartar emetic so that
there was no room for food or fluids.
which he should have had to keep up the
system? Poor man, how he must have
suffered and he couldn't make them stop
their torture, though he seems to have
tried to do so. But the medical men GER
tify that after repeated efforts to be under
stood he succeeded in expressing a desire
that he might be permitted to die without
interruption. There my brother doctors,
are you convinced? Wasn't that a clear
case of malpractice|
"No, sir" humorously responded
brother doctor. "That was in accordance
with the treatment adopted by that emf
nent physician, Dr. Sangrado, who had a
large practice in Spain over 200 years ago
which practice, as impaired by the re-
nowned Sangrado to his apt student, Gil
Bias, consisted in copious bleeding and
keeping the patients body filled with hot
water"